The Battle Room Saga
by NotSoEpic
Summary: Battle School is a place for the young elite to be trained for war. Its students are not children, but soldiers destined to become great officers... or fail and ice out. The most important game in the school is the Battle Room, where they must train and compete to prove themselves. Some will excel, some will be broken, but each has their own story.
1. Turtle Army

**Preface:** This is a story set in the Battle School of an alternate verse to Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game saga, following the lives and experiences of various OC students within it as well as, of course, the school's most famous Battle Room game and their struggles within it. Some liberties are being taken in this work with regards to the general rules regarding the workings of the school and the Battle Room game for the sake of story and drama, but the fundamentals will remain. I hope you guys enjoy it!

* * *

**LYNN HADRIAN**

**ASSIGNED TURTLE ARMY**

**COMMANDER NEIL TOKAR**

**EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY**

**CODE BLUE BROWN WHITE**

**NO POSSESSIONS TRANSFERRED**

* * *

A confident grin formed on the girl's lips as the ribbon of blue brown white along the color wall she had been following came to an end before the barracks door. The door slid open before the 8 year old, her small and petite frame betrayed by her bold, hands on hips stance. Bright brown eyes flashed determinedly as the braided ponytail of her long reddish brown hair hung down over the flat breast of her pale green jumpsuit and she found herself glaring into the long and narrow army barracks room. "Lynn Hadrian reporting for duty!" she shouted into the room, drawing attention from the older boys who had been gathered around their bunks.

There was a moment of awkward silence, followed shortly after by a burst of laughter. "Did'ya hear that?" a thin, black-haired boy of about nine who had been laying on the top bunk nearest the door said mockingly, cackling as he pushed himself over the side and landed on his feet. He stepped towards her, and looked down at her with a bemused smile. Though he couldn't be more than a year or two older, the boy was tall for his age and stood a full head and a half over Lynn. "The launchie's reporting for duty! If she's so eager to work, maybe she should start by tidying up."

He pat her on the head with a cackle in a demeaning manner and soon opened his mouth to continue – but found himself interrupted as the girl stepped in and tackled him to the ground. "You tidy up, doll back!" she growled as she came down on him with a flurry of blind fists. "You want a piece of me!?"

The older boy struggled to push her away, and she scowled ferociously as she reared her fist to hammer him in the cheek but fell still when she felt a strong grip tighten itself around her wrist. "I certainly hope this is not the kind of behavior you think we are tolerant of here in Turtle Army," a prepubescent, nasally yet cold voice spoke from behind her, and she turned her head towards it with an irritated grunt.

Lynn fell silent however, at the site of a much older boy; easily over ten and likely well on his way to his teens. He was short with curly blonde hair, wearing a brown trimmed dark green jumpsuit which many of the other boys in the barracks also wore. Scowling, he released her wrist and she stumbled backwards. "Welcome, recruit. I am your new commander, Neil. My apologies for Hayao's behavior, but that does not excuse your response by any means. Apologize, both of you."

The taller boy turned towards Lynn and bowed his head to her in a respectful manner, having stood up and begun rubbing a fresh bruise on his chin as he listened to their exchange. "Shitsureishimashita. I was rude."

Lynn looked back at him with an unsure glare before glancing back at the commander nervously. She'd acted rashly again. Even having wanted to make a strong impression in her first army, proving to her new comrades that she was tough as nails and didn't take crap from anyone, she'd been warned before about her outbursts and this was unexcusable. Getting iced before she even had the chance to play her first match in the Battle Room, which she had been looking forward for two long years, was the last thing she wanted. She bowed her head back, mimicking Hayao's gesture. "I'm sorry too. It won't happen again."

"See to it," Neil responded, adjusting the position of his glasses, "or I _will_ have you iced. I have published for Turtle Army a list of rules which I expect you to follow." He paced before her as he spoke, while Hayao stepped back to his bunk and shot her a taunting sneer when his line of sight was elsewhere. "You will find that we aren't like most other armies. As popular as it may be here in the school, the Battle Room is only a game and Turtle Army places priority on academic achievement above all else. You will be expected to study for at least two hours a day, minimum. If your grades fail to excel, you will not be allowed to hold a leading position within the army. If they persist, you will be removed. Turtle Army currently holds second place in average grade level in the entire school; and we're shooting for first."

Lynn wasn't one for listening to long-winded speeches, not helped by the Commander's boring and nerdish voice, but made sure to listen carefully to his words. He was her superior officer, which meant that she had to show him utmost respect and obey his orders. She'd heard stories amongst her launch group about soldiers in older classes being iced for the slightest hint of disobedience. Her heart sunk a little as he mentioned the army's focus on academic achievement rather than Battle Room combat - the exact opposite of what she had been hoping for. While no fool, she was far from the most intelligent and studious of soldiers in her launch group. The only thing she truly excelled at had been the practice sessions and mock battles held for her Launch Group in the Battle Room, and she'd always hoped that would be what made her stand out to the administrators. She wasn't suited for this army, at all.

Lynn raised her hand, and Neil stopped to shoot her a glance. "Speak."

"Does this mean our Battle Room performance will be extraneous?"

"I never said that. We still work hard on our formations and tactics. You will be given proper training and expected to excel in the Battle Room; we do aim to improve our place in the rankings. The difference from other armies being that we do not believe it should at the cost of one's education."

"And what if one fails to excel?"

Neil's forehead creased. "Our Toon Leaders and their Seconds are required to offer tutoring to you if you request it. I'd advise you to make full use of that." He turned to look down the barracks and motioned his hand for a boy sitting on a top bunk halfway down the left row while using his desk to come join them. "For now, you are in Alpha Toon under Amadei, the Lieutenant Commander. You will follow his commands, is that understood?"

"Yes, sir."

Neil turned to leave as Amadei arrived. Amadei was short for his age, barely taller than the much younger Lynn, with brown hair in a flattop. He looked her up and down, and frowned. The Commander was studious and apathetic, but Amadei was distant and professional in another way. "I'll show you to your bunk. Welcome to Turtle Army, soldier."

"Thanks," she replied, following behind him when he turned to walk down the narrow lane.

"Alpha Toon consists of 18 soldiers, including me and two Seconds. Do well, and you could be transferred to Beta, Gamma, or Delta. Of course, by that I mean both in the Battle Room and in class."

"Study and practice a lot. Got it."

He shot her a glance from over his shoulder before exhaling a slight snort. "A bit simplified, but yeah." He stopped before the 8th bunk on the left row and pat his hand on the bottom bed to signal that this was her spot. "Your first practice with the army is tomorrow at 0800, but you have your schedule in your desk so you probably know where to go."

She nodded and stepped into the space between bunks where she pulled her locker compartments open and looked inside to find a quartet of uniforms in Turtle Army's colors. She immediately began to undo her own pale green 'launchie' jumpsuit and replace it with one of the four green and brown ones. As she finished she turned to lie down on her bed, which had plenty of space given that it was built to accommodate children up to four years older than her. Flinging her braid over her shoulder so that it came to rest over her pillow, she sighed peacefully while spreading out her limbs.

Finally, this was her time. She had been planning this for nearly two years now – excel in the Battle Room and prove herself as a great soldier. She wasn't a launchie anymore. This was the start of her era.

* * *

Neil Tokar entered his cabin and took a seat at his desk composedly. He straightened his glasses before pressing a hand on his desk to activate it, causing an abundance of images, pages, tables, and charts to spring onto its surface. He pulled up a new flanking maneuver he had been working on and made it project upwards to create a globe-like 3D simulation of the Battle Room. He typed into the computer for a few minutes before starting it and watching as the simulation progressed.

He watched as two armies of 41 filed into the sphere. His own programmed side was represented by blue lights while the A.I. army following a preprogrammed standard strategy was orange. The orange army quickly divided into four toons, and sent three forward to attack. The foremost of the three was met head on by a massive force, which the other two soon moved to surround. A second toon of blue lights came to attack the surrounding mass from a separate angle as the larger toon was rapidly annihilated; turning the scene into a huge conflict while they all tried to take cover behind the nearest stars. The fourth orange toon moved to provide support, and a slight smile formed on Neil's lips when two smaller, faster strike forces came in to pincer them.

The smirk turned to a frown, however, upon seeing the original blue force all but destroyed shortly after and the remnants of the three orange toons attacking them split into two forces; one going after their reinforcements while the other backtracked to hunt down the two strike teams who were still occupied with their fourth toon. He watched as blue lights rapidly blinked out before finally closing the program prematurely with a disappointed grunt and burying his face in his palm. The room was silent and dark for a moment, before his eyes snapped open when the familiar beep of an incoming message resounded from his desk.

_How are you? Still haven't given up? You'll only be crushed again, brother._

He grit his teeth uneasily, before typing a reply.

_We'll see._


	2. Chess Pieces

His padded flash suit tightly squeezing around his skin, Timmy Lane laughed through the visor of his dark green and brown helm as he kicked off the wall of the Battle Room in order to send himself barreling forward. Someone a few meters off his flight path tried to shoot at him while he was flying, but Timmy's speed was too great and the light didn't come close to hitting its target. As he passed by the shooter, he pivoted himself in mid-air and looked backwards to shoot at the boy's back. He turned to continue shooting forward, and his eyes darted sideways as he heard a voice.

"You're mine!" it shouted as he turned his head enough to see another soldier floating above his position. The soldier fired in what should have been a clear shot, but was too late as Timmy twisted himself again in order to thrust his leg at the star he had been aiming for. This action sent him shooting sideways, rotating around and around at high speed. He caught himself on another star and extended his arm to fire upwards at the second attack's location – hitting him dead in the chest to instantly freeze him. The frozen soldier's body stiffened and he began to float slowly and aimlessly in the air. "No fair! You cheater!"

Holding onto the star, Timmy got a closer look and recognized the soldier's voice and face. It was the newly arrived launchie from yesterday. Lynn, he thought her name was. "All's fair in love and war, bab," he snickered, and she snapped back angrily; verbally since her body was frozen.

"That was da bomb, Tim!" another boy said as he and three others pushed themselves down to their level from further up; "you were jus like a comet!" Timmy chuckled humbly.

"You've made good improvement," the officer of the six man sub-troop, Amadei said, "continue at this rate and you could make Second in a matter of months. That said, don't do that last maneuver again; it's a good way to sprain your ankle. I'll show you some better alternatives in a bit. And if Feliz were a veteran he would have flashed you before you passed him."

"I'll keep that in mind, LC," Timmy replied, letting go of the star and allowing himself to float in place while the Commander on the other side of the arena used his hook to unfreeze everyone in the room. Feliz and Lynn sprang to life and pushed themselves towards the gathered group as quickly as they could manage.

When she came near, Amadei turned to Lynn. "Next time make sure your opponent doesn't have anything to alter their path next time you shoot at them, else you're leaving yourself wide open for a counter." Lynn grumbled to herself irritably. "Don't worry, you're still a rookie."

After having been in Turtle Army for more than a month - going through over twenty practice sessions and four matches - Timmy had gotten a pretty good idea as to how things worked around here. His toon, Alpha Toon, was expendable. All of the 18 boys within it, save the Lieutenant Commander and his two Seconds, were young, inexperienced, or just plain unskilled. Their jobs were that of sacrificial pawns – provide meat shields or distractions for the smaller, but more elite toons. Amadei and his Seconds were skilled at training, their official duty being to improve the skills of the newbies placed under their command and then transfer them to one of the other three toons once they made enough progress. Timmy personally didn't think he had much time left in Alpha Toon – it was a matter of days or weeks before his promotion to Beta, Gamma, or Delta Toons, he expected. Perhaps the only reason it was taking so long was that Amadei had taken a personal attachment to him and wanted to give him all the training he could before sending him away. Or maybe it was just his lackluster grades, not bad but not good, that were holding him back.

"Alright, form up and let's practice the Ring Drill!" Amadei shouted, and the five of them kicked off in unison to follow him upwards.

In his month here, he had come to understand that Commander Tokar was intelligent – even amongst the academic elites gathered in Battle School. He had been in charge of Turtle Army for a long time now, over a year, and spent most of his days in his cabin studying or strategizing. He was cold and calculating, positioning and ordering his troops in battle as if he were playing pieces on a chessboard. Though not the most social of Commanders, he ran a highly organized army. Turtle Army wasn't one of the better teams, but it was far from the worst too. Some say they might actually make it comfortably into the top ten in the rankings if he weren't so insistent on transferring good soldiers of his army for ignoring their studies. Timmy had another, opinion, however: Neil's demeanor made him distant from the rest of his army so that it was hard to truly come together under him. They all respected him, in a way, but his treatment of them as pieces in a strategy game lowered their team spirit and kept them from truly coming together under his command.

Neil's leadership was flawed, but there was still much Timmy could learn from him. It seemed to him that many commanders and leaders in Battle School were determined to prove their own merit – either commanding their armies in their own way with no regard to what their past leaders had taught them, or just blindly copying and directing standard battle formations. He would be different. When he was a commander – and he knew he would be, some day – he would make full use of the strategies and styles of the commanders and toon leaders he worked under, ironing out their flaws on improving on them until they became his own. And he would teach his followers to do the same. Unlike most, Timmy's interests were not only to show off his own achievements, but to leave a lasting legacy as well. Even if his name was forgotten, his students and the students of his students would continue building off his own style and those of others and steadily develop the game into something greater. And he was the type to, whenever he had a dream, always see it through.

* * *

Neil fingered his hook methodically at his side, having positioned himself near the top of the Battle Room above where his gate would be were this an official match so that he had a full view of his army training below. Alpha Toon occupying the lower third of the room was split into three groups and practicing basic battle skills, as usual. The amount of training time dedicated to formations and other tactics or skills focused on Toons was kept to a minimum. As pawns, they wouldn't need it much; simply honing their basic abilities took precedence so that they might each last a little longer on their own. At their level, complex Toon maneuvers would only cause them to trip over themselves anyways.

Conversely, Beta Toon occupied a quarter of the room near the top where they were practicing support and defensive formations. Strong, sturdy, and reliable – if Alpha Toon were the pawns then Beta was his Rook. In the central area of the sphere, overlapping with the others areas, the smaller Gamma and Delta Toons were moving together at high speed in tightly packed formations; darting through the stars nimbly and accurately as they rained fire on imaginary opponents and avoided nonexistent fire. Swift and skilled, elite strike forces ready to slip through enemy lines and obliterate them unaware – they were the Bishops. And he was the King, directing them all. Every piece had its place.

"**A winning strategy is only as good as the hand that plays it."**

His heart beat hard and he clenched his fist uneasily as the words resounded through his mind. Those dark, penetrating eyes and slight malicious smirk briefly flashed before him as he closed his eyes. _'I'm remembering pointless things again,'_ he told himself silently, shaking his head and returning to his senses. Why did those particular words continue to haunt him even after two long years? Was it just proof that that no matter how much he planned and strategized, he would always be second rate? The fact that the thought even crossed his mind angered him.

Many minutes passed, and he raised his voice when the halfway mark of the three hour practice session was reached. "Alright, move on to the second stage of the training! Beta, you're up against Gamma and Delta! Alpha, get back together and start practicing group vs. group skirmishes!" As his voice echoed through the Battle Room, the numerous troops moved to comply and continue with their practice. He watched with prudence, and used his hook to drive himself towards the area where Beta, Gamma, and Delta were training so he could oversee their performance with more precision.

'_No, that's not true. I will excel, no matter the obstacles.'_

* * *

The sound of faucets running en-masse echoed through the room as Turtle Army veteran Hayao walked through the long and narrow shower room. Sweat dripped from his brow from a hard day of practice, and a white towel was wrapped around his waist. The showers, small and separated by low walls, were mostly occupied by his fellow troops, and he smiled sociably as many of them called him out when he walked past them.

"Ho Yao!"

"Ho Yao!"

"Ho Yao!"

He chuckled, pumping his fist back at them. "Kon'nichiwa! Who we be?"

"Turtle Army! Snap 'em good!" They roared in unison, and he finally found and entered an empty stall on the left row. He threw his towel on the rack and turned on the handle while starting to scrub.

"Ho Yao," another voice said, this one in a lower and calmer tone as its owner leaned over the low wall in the adjacent stall. The boy was 9, with a short, stocky build and soaked blonde hair. "You hear the news?"

"Which news?"

"I overheard it earlier… day say LC is wantin' to make Lane a Second for Gamma." The boy turned his head and pointed behind him, at a redheaded and freckled boy showering six stalls down; appearing to be conversing with those close to him.

"Tim? Heck no! We're next in line, right? I'm not taking orders from some Alpha Trash."

"I hear ya', but iss what they're sayin."

"I've been in Beta three months; some alpha can't just come in, show off a little, and get promoted. The heck does LC know? He good, but he still in Alpha." He stared down at the unknowing Timm with a frown, until noticing the girl in the stall beside his; whom he appeared to be close to. Slowly, his frown grew into a devious smirk as he remembered her from the day before, plotting vengeance. "Maybe we should give him a little lesson," he said under his breath.

The other veteran laughed. "Yeah, maybe."

* * *

"You upset?" Timmy snickered, leaning down to peer down on Lynn as, fresh from the shower, she laid down on her lower bunk. "Sleepy already?"

"Get lost, doll back!" Lynn replied, knocking him backwards with a backhanded fist to the face. As he fell to the floor, she grunted irritably while turning on her side away from him. Timmy had repeatedly up showed her throughout the practice and as much as she had daydreamed about coming in as an ace rookie, the reality was that she could barely keep up. To make matters worse, not only had he and the other three troops in Amadei's sub-toon suddenly start gathering around her, but he – the most bothersome of them all – happened to sleep on the bunk right beside hers and took full advantage of it to mess with her. "Don't bother me!"

"What's got you so grumpy?" Timmy asked, landing on his buttocks in the space between their bunks and rubbing his nose where Lynn had struck it. "Sad that I'm better than ya?"

"Of course not!" she yelled while looking away from him; "and you're not better than me!"

"Today's practice said otherwise."

"I had a cold, so I was taking it easy!"

"I could show ya some moves in free time if you want."

"I said get lost!"

She grumbled grabbing her pillow and slamming it over the side of her head to cover her ears and block out his annoying taunts.

* * *

Sitting before his desk and the holographic battle room simulator once again, Neil ran various tests on it silently for quite some time. _Tch,_ he sputtered as his programmed strategy failed miserably once again. Dark circles were forming around his eyes, and he lowered his head to his desk in frustration; distorting the projected image before him in the process. His head shot back up as the sound of a note sliding through his door was heard. Standing up, he walked to pick it up.

**Rustam Bagdanov, Bigfoot Army, Friday, 0700**

**3 Days Notice**


	3. Turtle Army vs Bigfoot Army (1)

Three days had passed in arduousness, and Lynn had found herself struggling to grow accustomed to her new army. Joining her toon and training in null gravity wasn't much of a problem – she had had practice sessions before as a launchie and, even if these lessons were more strenuous, she was starting to get the hang of it.

No, what was getting to her was the less physical work. She had never placed much emphasis on her studies before, and now it was coming to bite her. Neil and the other officers had coded a schedule into the desk network which required all members of their toon sign in and out each day and cited them automatically to their Toon Leader if they slacked off using some complex programs which went over her head. They didn't have to do the two hours a day in one session so most made a habit of splitting them up into more manageable periods throughout the day, but if they failed to meet them by lights out they were reprimanded the next day by their Toon Leader. Lynn found that out the hard way.

The Commander had set up an interesting system where doing well in one's classes or acing a test or quiz would give them free minutes to reduce their required study time with, and, as a result, the more intelligent of soldiers in the army ended up having more free time on their hands. It didn't do much from Lynn herself, though. Hearing a particular group of smarties in the barracks laughing and socializing amongst themselves while she was stuck on her desk scrolling through molecular physics textbooks and doing homework aggravated her and she was forced to get used to droning them out.

Neil had also programmed a deskpage which sorted the 41 troops in the army from 1st to 41st on the basis of their academic performance and automatically updated every morning. As expected, Neil himself held the first position every day without fail, while a close second was a young brainiac by the name of Hayao. The following positions always shifted around a lot, with Lynn noticing that the Lieutenant Commander and Alpha Toon Leader, Amadei, usually floated somewhere between 6th and 3rd. Lynn herself was almost always dead last, which Amadei said would get her kicked out if she didn't improve.

Despite being bogged down with studies, Lynn still leapt at the chance to train in the Battle Room using what free time she had left. The other four boys in her sub-toon continued to hang around her until, before she realized it, she had become accustomed to their company. They together trained under their toon's officers during regular practice sessions, sat together in classes, and spent most of their recreational time with each other. She grudgingly accepted Timmy's offer to go to a battle room during their free time and get in some extra practice along with the others.

At 0600 on the morning of her fifth day in Turtle Army, the lights of their barracks lit up overhead and the soldiers began to obstinately stir from their bunks. At first, Lynn moaned and tried to go back to sleep, but she stopped herself upon recalling that today was the day of her first battle. Her first chance to prove her worth.

She swung herself out of bed and rubbed her eyes drearily while trying to wake herself up. Without even bothering to put on her jumpsuit, she reached into her locker and pulled out her desk. She placed it on her lap and powered it up, immediately pulling up the shortcut to the deskpage containing the army's updated academic rankings. She scrolled down with her eyes peeled expectantly. Finally, she saw her name and grinned. "Yes! I went up!" she shouted, pumping her fists.

"To 37th," Timmy muttered, peering over her shoulder; "that's still pretty bad."

"What do you know, 30," she replied, pushing him away. "I'll be passing you up soon. In grades, and in the Battle Room."

"Yeah right," he snickered in reply.

…

"Get moving soldiers!" Amadei shouted at them and the other boys with the tone of a drill sergeant, walking down the lane between rows of bunks. "Battle Today! Shower time ends at 0620! Breakfast at 0640! Flash Suits on by 0650! Alpha Toon, don't slack off!" The boys that hadn't already gotten up were starting to rouse, and the Commander watched the scene in silent examination from his position beside the door. Amadei's short figure made him smaller than about half the army, but still they all respected his commands (grudgingly, in some cases); even - or rather, especially - the leaders of the other toons.

Once she had stood up, replaced her desk, and slipped on her jumpsuit, Lynn rejoined Timmy and the rest of her sub-toon to file through the lane between bunks towards the door to head to the showers. As they passed by Neil, her friend Klas muttered to her once they were through the door. "He's not looking good."

She had noticed it herself. Commander Tokar looked tired, with dark bags under his eyes as if he hadn't been getting much sleep recently. She'd been in Turtle Army long enough to have heard the rumors – that he had difficulty sleeping and would often worked through the night. She had taken them with a grain of salt before, but getting a close look at him now made her wonder if there had truth to them after all. In thought, she let out a surprised yelp as she felt a hand clap her in the back and almost send her face faulting into the floor.

"Watch it, doll back!" she yelled back at the offender, Timmy, angrily as he and Feliz laughed; already losing her train of thought and returning her focus to the upcoming battle.

* * *

Timmy thumbed the hilt of his blaster still holstered on his side in anticipation, staring at the blank wall that would soon open and reveal a force field protected gate leading into the Battle Room. In their flash suits and standing at attention, Turtle Army had divided itself into the four toons and were waiting for orders. His own Alpha Squad was nearest to the door, standing in rows of three, as they would be the first to enter. Amadei and the two seconds – Jonas and Hans – stood at the front of the toon, while Neil situated himself next to the wall where the gate would soon appear. Timmy himself stood in the center of the fourth row between Lynn and Klas, Feliz standing in the following row and the final member of their sub-toon, Nike, standing in the preceding one.

Although he was meant to be still and ready, Timmy looked around curiously at others. The veterans in the other toons looked to be full of confidence and eagerness for battle, while a good number of those in Alpha Toon looked to be uneasy or else neutral as if unconfident in their abilities. Despite all her big talk, Lynn's nervous shuddering could be clearly seen as the clock ticked down.

"Nothing to be concerned about!" Neil shouted to the army, drawing back his attention. Tired though he may look, the pressure of leading the battle seemed to have cleared his mind, Timmy noted. "Bigfoot Army is one of the weaker teams – not even in the top twenty. This should be an easy victory, but that doesn't mean its ok to slack off. We're going with _Strategy: Calvary Escort _this time – Alpha, split into your sub-toons and join with Beta, Gamma, and Delta." Of course, they'd already been talking plans for the past two days, and, seeing how he had gotten it down the first time it was stated, Timmy didn't see much need to listen.

One thing he liked about Alpha Toon was that they were almost always the first to see action, and this strategy was no exception. Even acting as meat shields to take fire for Beta, he still had the opportunity to rain hell down on the enemy toon before he went down. And the more troops he froze or injured before that happened would increase his own standing.

Silence fell as the gate slid open, and Neil stared through it keenly. The room wasn't empty; but there were no stars littering it either – a massive structure consisting of nine large pillars connected by five rings was anchored in mid-air in the center of the room. A cylindrical frame. Neil let out a confident hum. "Beta Toon! Draw the enemy into the center region of the cylinder! Gamma, take control of the top and fire down! Delta, take the bottom! Go!"

Led by Amadei, Alpha Toon immediately marched forward to step through the gate row by row. He smiled as it was finally his turn and laughed as he felt the feeling of weightlessness over take him the moment he passed through the force field. It was as if, after a lifetime of being tethered down by the laws of nature and gravity, he was finally free. He didn't have long to enjoy himself, however, as he saw Amadei holding onto the wall to the right of the gate and moved to join him. The other two sub-toons each led by a second from Alpha had split up in separate directions, waiting to join up with the toons they had been tasked with escorting.

Bigfoot Army was filing out of their gate a distance away at about the same time, and Amadei grunted while motioning towards the cylinder – with Beta Toon still filing out. "We're going first. Pair up and jump for the columns or the rings. Try to spread out, and keep cover until Beta makes it out." They complied and grabbed hands in pairs. Amadei himself joined with the sub-toon's least skilled soldier, Nike, before jumping off in order to help ensure that he hit his target safely and didn't fly right past it, while Timmy and Klas continued the trend with Feliz and Lynn respectively.

Timmy landed on one of the columns just as it was Delta Toon's turn to begin exiting. He flung Feliz onto the space above him, a feat made possible due to their weightlessness. "FIRE!" he heard Amadei shout just as he whipped out his pistol and aimed a shot at one of the approaching enemies. They were still a distance away so he missed, but just barely. He ducked for cover as the incoming toon returned fire in earnest, peering over every few seconds to fire another shot.

Bigfoot Army had reached the opposite end of the cylindrical frame and taken position behind the rings and columns so that they could protect themselves and fire back. Beta Toon joined them, and the battle quickly transformed into a form of three-dimensional trench warfare with the center of the cylinder, some forty meters across, as no man's land.

"Alpha, cover us!" the Beta Toon Leader shouted over the clamor of blaster fire, and Timmy and Feliz peered out and open fired while a small squad leapt through the gap towards an adjacent pillar; the others doing the same as another small unit moved in the other direction.

He heard a distressed cry from Feliz as a shot struck him in the shoulder and he jerked backwards, spiraling away helplessly. With three of Bigfoot's ten man toons assaulting them, they were outnumbered and outgunned; it was only due to Beta's (and Amadei's) skills that they were able to hold their ground at all.

But it was only a matter of time before they were overwhelmed. Bigfoot Army, having nearly twice their numbers, was spreading around the edges of the cylinder at an alarming rate. Five minutes in, and Bigfoot Army had controlled some 270 degrees of the cylinder's center compared to Turtle Army's 90. With more ground taken by the enemy came more angles that the Turtles had to avoid fire from.

Timmy forced a smirk from beneath his visor as he pressed his back against the column. By this point, it was too dangerous to peer out and take a shot without getting hit himself. _'Great... I'm stuck here.'_


	4. Turtle Army vs Bigfoot Army (2)

As Neil had expected, most of Bigfoot Army's forces had been drawn towards the cylinder at gate level by Beta Toon's presence. He had done his research beforehand, knowing that the enemy was one of the armies which placed all their best soldiers in one toon and their worst in another, and he - separating from his own forces - lifted himself to the near top of the battle room so that he could stare down at the battle as it unfolded – callously observing it just as he had the simulations he programmed into his desks every night.

By floating so high up and out of the way, he was able to get a clear, impartial view of most of the cylinder and those that fought around it. Three toons had gone straight for Beta; one of which maneuvered themselves and fought with impressive skill which made Neil assume that it was Bigfoot Toon A, consisting of their best soldiers. The other two toons which joined them moved sloppily in comparison; one seemed especially unskilled and quickly suffered heavy losses. Likely Toons C and D, their worst two. Between Toon A's ability and their superior numbers, it was clear that Beta was fighting on a losing front. But that was fine. A game of chess cannot be won without making sacrifices.

Delta and Gamma Toons were already in position, taking the top and bottom edges of the cylinder which Bigfoot had ignored in favor of fighting near gate level. As their forces were busy dealing with the remnants of Beta Toon, the two strike forces would come down and easily crush them from two opposite fronts. Bigfoot was a weak army overall, and it was only a matter of time before they had achieved certain victory.

Hovering in place, he noticed that the enemy's reserve toon – Toon B, he assumed – had seen the incoming ambush and chosen to head downwards to confront Delta. They swooped on them from above and unleashed a storm of lasers to cripple them, but Delta's escort, consisting of 6 members of Alpha Toon, had positioned themselves between them and the attackers and took the brunt of the damage. The escort was almost instantly eliminated, but in doing so they gave Delta the perfect opportunity to carve into the attacking toon. Delta would be delayed of course, but they would have little trouble taking out their opponents.

'_This would be Check, I believe,' _Neil thought in confidence, continuing to stare down at the conflict below.

* * *

Moving with agile grace, Gamma Toon Leader Rolf Lindbergh – or _Lightning Bolt Rolf_, as he had been nicknamed - grinned while landing and grabbing onto the upper rim of the cylinder with three limbs. His toon and their escort did the same as he stared down at the fight happening further down the cylinder. _'Beta won't last much longer,' _he thought cautiously while whipping out his blaster in his free hand and clinging to the rim with his hands and feet. He motioned to his toon with the same hand.

"Alpha, you head down first and draw their fire. Gamma, take positions and hit them unaware – hard," he said, just before pushing himself up and kicking off the rim of the cylinder to jump across its gap. He grabbed onto the ring of the other side to stop himself, before rolling around it and kicking off again in order to jump off the cylinder and reach the wall opposite their own gate. At the same time, Alpha had dived down at an angle into no man's land, opening fire on the unexpecting bigfoots. Most of the enemies retreated behind the columns and rings they were clinging to for cover, and Delta moved out. Using the sliding technique, he surfed down the wall while holding out his pistol and firing down at their backs. In thirty seconds, he alone had frozen two bigfoots and injured two more.

"We turtles got a nasty bite!" he mocked as he came down, and the enemy began to scramble in chaos. A skilled shooter had turned and fired upwards at him while he was still around thirty meters overhead, only for him to laugh as he kicked off the wall before he could pull the trigger, doing a backflip of sorts while returning fire from an upside down position and nailing his attacker in the chest before landing on one of the columns and continuing to fire downwards.

* * *

Trapped behind one of the pillars, Timmy found himself looking around at the rest of his army fighting near him. Feliz, Nike, as well as four members of Beta Toon had already been taken out, while Klas and four more were injured. Like him, most of the others – even Beta Toon – were forced to go on the defensive. Most of them – Amadei, the Beta Toon Commander, and his second being the sole exceptions – ended up spending more time cowering behind the safety of the pillar and rings than actually returning fire. It was difficult to so much as get a chance to peer over their covers without getting shot at themselves, let alone take aim and fire. They'd taken out a good chunk of the enemy swarm beforehand, but the difference in their numbers was still great.

He frowned as he saw Beta's second, positioned on the ring above him and to the right, take a headshot and float slowly backwards, frozen. He then shook his head, grinding his teeth. _'What am I doing hiding? We're supposed to be relieving pressure off Beta, and giving them more clear shots. Even if that means taking a risk.'_

He clenched his fist and prepared to jump out – but it seemed someone had beaten him to the punch. "Eat this, doll backs!" Lynn screamed as she recklessly pushed out of her hiding place behind a pillar to his right and rapidly fired at the bigfoots. Timmy wondered if she had come to the same conclusion as he had, although he thought it more likely that she had simply grown tired of hiding and wanted to show off. She paid the price, of course, being quickly frozen, but her failure had become his greatest chance. Pivoting around the pillar, he aimed for her and kicked off with all his strength. Shooting forward, he grabbed Lynn's frozen body as he passed by her and dragged her with him towards the next pillar where Klas extended a hand to help pull them to a stop.

"Hey bab, gimme cover," he said to the frozen Lynn as he held her body a few inches from the side of the pillar, leaving enough room for him to slip his blaster arm through while Klas held his legs to keep him from floating off. Lynn muttered angrily at his use of her body, but found her voice muffled by her helmet which clasped around her jaw. Regardless of the girl's discontent, Timmy's improvised three man formation proved to be quite useful. Within Lynn acting as a shield protecting him from enemy fire, he peered over her shoulder and was free to aim and fire. Gamma Toon had made its move at the same time, completely solidifying the turning tides in their favor.

Bigfoot Army was in chaos, and he enjoyed shooting them down one by one as they scattered about in search for better cover. This was the end.

His eyes fell upon a tall, muscular boy who moved about with impressive skill and appeared to be directing those around him while easily avoiding Amadei's attempts to shoot him down; probably an enemy Toon Leader. He struggled to follow his movements with his gun's line of fire – whoever this was, he was good. Really good. He watched as the enemy spiraled around mid-leap, taking aim and puzzling Timmy as he fired far downwards well away from where any of Beta or Gamma troops could possibly be. He pondered this for an instant, before Klas' voice cried out in his ear.

"They got Delta's Toon Leader!" he said, having had a chance to observe the battlefield and other toons as he clung to the pillar and held the two of them in place

A chill went down Timmy's spine upon hearing this, realizing exactly what it meant. Delta Toon was occupied with the enemy's reserve toon below them, and could hardly have expected an attack from above as they did so. And he couldn't blame them for having that opening either. The fact that he had managed to take aim and accurately fire at distant target – let alone identifying their toon leader and taking him out - while in the midst of Beta and Delta's assault was a testament to the individual's skill. His stomach churned with an uneasy feeling, having the sensation that things were about to get a whole lot harder.

Down below, Delta Toon could not help but falter at the unexpected loss of their officer, giving the reserve toon they had been about to tear apart a second wind. Back above, the enemy toon leader was barking commands and slowly but surely bringing order to his army's chaos. A portion of their troops jumped and sacrificed themselves as the rest made their way downwards, continuing to fire both at them and downwards at the same time.

Before long, Delta Toon was no more, and Bigfoot's reserve toon rejoined their main force, which shifted directions again in order to come upwards and face the rest of Turtle Army on even standing. He shifted Lynn's body at a downwards angle to fire down at them, but paused before long as he noticed a brief light flash behind him accompanied by the buzzing of a disabled flash suit. He felt Klas' grip around his leg disappear and turned his head to see his frozen teammate floating away. It was all he could do to release Lynn and grab onto the pillar before he too drifted helplessly off. _'No way… from above!? Impossible! Who could have fired that?'_

His heart beat fast, knowing that no one on his side would be safe until they located the enemy that had snuck above them and hidden himself. This was going to be even harder than he had thought.


	5. Turtle Army vs Bigfoot Army (3)

'_That bastard…'_ Lynn thought resentfully as she, upside down, found herself drifting and twirling helplessly through the spherical battle room, the sound of firing weapons resounding around her. She would speak out in anger, were it not for the bottom of her helmet clamping down her jaw. She tried to move her limbs, but found it quite useless as her flash suit was frozen stiff. '_I can't believe he used me as a shield. He's gonna pay for that!'_

As her body revolved, she was able to get a brief glance in the direction of the cylindrical frame of stars and the soldiers still fighting tooth and nail for dominance along its edges. She couldn't make out much, but it seemed as if things weren't going smoothly. _'But first… he better win this battle.'_

* * *

Amadei breathed hard, watching with growing dismay as Delta Toon below them was rapidly wiped out. He glanced back up, returning his focus completely to the battle, and glared downwards at the large and muscular toon leader who had orchestrated this turn around. _'Who is this guy?' _He had thought that Neil already uncovered all the information on Bigfoot's aces they would need to know about, but they'd never anticipated someone like him; avoiding being flashed with complex movement patterns. His skills were top class no doubt, probably among the best in all of Battle School. How had they failed to identify someone like him beforehand?

The enemy's forces were coming up rapidly, and he had to move. Holding his gun by the barrel, he clasped both hands on the column of stacked stars he had been using for cover and began to scurry up it. Using his muscles he kept his legs from floating backwards while he climbed quickly upwards to put distance between him and them.

But one good soldier didn't equate to a good army, he knew as he reached the next highest ring and pulled himself atop it. He twirled his gun into its proper position and thrust his arm downwards to fire, being sure to keep most of his body protected by the ring as he did so. Dozens of frozen bodies now littered no man's land, making it difficult to get a proper shot across it, but thankfully also provided him someone protection.

Keeping his guard up all the while, Amadei glanced around and got a feel for the situation. What was left of Turtle Army, barely a dozen troops, was now scattered about the top half of the cylinder, while Bigfoot Army was pressing upwards vigorously. Beta was now down to three boys - none of them a Toon Leader or a Second – while their escorts had been reduced to just him and Timmy, from what he could tell. Delta was gone altogether, leaving Gamma the only toon with minimal damages. The enemy only slightly outnumbered them by this point, but what remained of their forces had united and were operating cohesively by following their ace's lead.

Across the cylinder, he noticed someone grab onto a frozen troop and then jump in his direction – positioning the body below him as a shield to block incoming fire while riding it as a surfboard across the gap. As he was nearing the opposite side, a bigfoot that had climbed higher than the rest took aim upwards at him and fired from an angle the shield couldn't protect him from. But the surfer had seen this and kicked off it, twirling in mid-air while snatching up a loose gun in his free hand so he, dual wielding blasters, could return fire. Both shots struck the bigfoot dead center simultaneously, and the dual-wielding boy continued hurling towards Amadei.

'_Of course, we have an ace of our own,_' Amadei thought as he extended a hand and helped stop the boy's flight. He touched down on the ring beside him in a crouched position, smiling. _'Lightning Bolt Rolf.'_

Two more Gamma troops leapt down to join them, and Rolf spoke. "LC, have Beta clear us a path. The two of us are going to take out the boss. I'll have half my toon stay high and provide supporting fire. That ok?"

He nodded, and relayed the orders before joining the three Gammas as they parkoured downwards with impressive skill, the enemy toon leader appearing to scowl upon seeing their approach. A storm of lasers soon ignited between them as the final firefight ensued.

* * *

Neil was taken off guard. He had been expecting a clean and easy victory, and the fact that such a low ranked team had managed to come back from those circumstances was dumbfounding. It was a disgrace to his strategic skill, and to his army's abilities. He had given up watching the battle from above and dived down to rejoin his army in their last stand against Bigfoot. He floated past the two Gamma troops holding the higher ground and landed near two Betas further below. Amadei and Rolf had already launched an initiative to take out the enemy ace, and he saw no reason to call them back. For now, he just needed to provide an extra pair of hands and give them a clear shot to do so alongside the Betas. Once that single opponent was taken out, the battle would be theirs.

He stopped himself behind a pillar near where the two betas were holding their positions and looked sideways at them. "You," he said pointing at one and dragging his finger through the air towards a junction where a pillar and a ring met some distance to the side, "go there." He did the same for the other soldier, directing him to a lower position so the three of them would form an equilateral triangle. "Fire at whoever I fire at, and do not leave your positions no matter what. Understood?"

* * *

"Yes sir," Timmy replied to the commander's order, dully surprised by his sudden appearance behind him. For the past couple minutes, he had been searching precariously upwards for Klas' unexpected attacker, but found no enemies above his position. _'Gamma must've already got him…'_

He made his way downwards to the best of his ability and took position beside a junction where a pillar and a ring ran through one another. He nestled himself in its corner so that his torso peered out ready to fire, thankful that the dwindling of soldiers had actually made it possible to peer out and aim at all unlike before.

The same could be said for Bigfoot Army, though. Their job was to reduce the number of targets that Amadei and Gamma had to deal with, and Neil's keen eye allowed him to pick out enemy shooters posing a threat and strike them. One bigfoot, taking aim at one of their comrades, was struck in the arm by Neil and stumbled long enough for the Beta to get him in the leg, followed shortly after by Timmy himself disabling him with a chest shot.

He pumped his fist victoriously at the success of their triangular formation and Neil was already picking out their next target. This continued a couple times as Neil and Rolf dueled with Bigfoot's ace expertly, constantly moving through the structure while exchanging fire – suffering losses and disabled limbs all the while. The three Gammas that had joined them were gone, frozen, and the enemy still had the advantage in numbers.

Two targets later, Timmy's gaze snapped to the side as he saw Rolf just barely block a shot from the ace with one of his arms. With his opposite leg already frozen, he was forced to do an awkward hop and spin around the nearest pillar for cover. He noticed a random bigfoot appear behind him while preparing to shoot and Neil attempted to flash him but found the light from his gun blocked by a frozen troop. The Beta in their formation failed to hit as well, and he felt his heart rise in his chest with a mix of excitement and nervousness as he realized that he was the only one with a clear shot. He exhaled slowly, steadying his arm, and then pulled the trigger with a smirk.

…

And missed.

The light only struck the bigfoot's leg, failing to freeze him and allowing him to pull the trigger unhindered. Rolf was struck in the back, instantly frozen, and Timmy slammed his fist into the pillar beside him in anger. It was over.

The ace had turned and fired a shot upwards, disabling the Beta in their formation before turning his attention back to Amadei. Timmy's heart beat fast and his pupils shrunk in panic as he knew that things had taken a turn for the worse. Amadei and the ace brawled from afar with their guns for a few precious seconds while the battle drew nearer and nearer to its conclusion.

Suddenly, time seemed to slow down and Timmy's eyes dilated as he stared at the debris of frozen bodies littering no man's land – his mind projecting a beam of light which zig zagged through them. He inhaled, recognizing the light as a pathway. One that avoided the ace's line of sight completely and gave him a direct shot. He knew that if he failed it was all over; leaving his position after being ordered to stay in place was blatant insubordination. But what if he could turn the tides back in their favor by doing so? Caught in a conundrum, he weighed his options in the span of an instant and came to a decision.

He thought - no, he was certain – that he could succeed. No enemy would be able to flash him before he reached his target and fired, and the maneuver for using frozen bodies as stepping stones that Amadei had taught him a few days before played back through his mind. There was no way he would fail.

By the time he crouched down, tightening his leg muscles ready to kick off, adrenaline pumped into his blood and he knew he could no longer stop himself. He shot forward headfirst at frightening speed, becoming a comet as he shot through the frozen bodies. Bouncing off them several times with the skill of a pro, he changed directions at sharp angles. His heart beating intensely, he laughed aloud knowing that that the moment of truth was soon to come. The ace had stepped out from his cover to fire at Amadei – knowing not that Timmy was already above his position and firing downwards straight into his chest. He roared as he pulled in his finger and a flash of light went off followed shortly after by the buzzing of a disabled suit.

It took Timmy a second to realize that his finger was still millimeters from the trigger, and it was his suit that was frozen. _'From above, again?'_ he thought to himself in disbelief as he was sent ricocheting off a pillar and spun wildly into no man's land. How could someone have possibly made that shot? But he knew it was the enemy hidden above higher up the cylinder - it had to be - and he silently cursed himself for assuming that he was no longer a threat. He'd failed again.

Minutes passed, his body gradually losing momentum while the sound of gunfire slowly died down. Finally, the lights came on and the teachergate slid open to let the officer administrating the match enter inside along an extending platform. "The battle has ended," she said loudly, her voice amplified by a microphone attached to her collar so that all in the large room could hear. "Congratulations, Bigfoot Army, on your victory."


	6. Pride, Pain, and Lightning

A crushing silence enveloped Turtle Army's barracks room that evening; most of the soldiers studied privately in their bunks while others simply sat there gloomily. Their defeat had been utterly humiliating - they, ranked 14th, had lost to the pathetically weak Bigfoot Army, ranked 22nd. Rather than the easy victory they had been expecting, they had fallen to 20th while Bigfoot rose to 16th, and the other armies in Battle School didn't hesitate to demean them for this disgrace. The sting of defeat hurt enough on its own, but the mocking laughter they had faced in the lunch room that afternoon only served to put them down even further. No one had seen Neil since the battle's end, no doubt holed up in his cabin in either discouragement or anger, but Timmy knew it was only a matter of time before he returned and they all became really sorry. Especially him.

"Rank 20," Neil's voice called out in an irate growl as the door to the barracks slid open and he stepped inside, drawing the army's attention. With his hands behind his back, he stepped slowly forward, and everyone stumbled out of their bunks in order to stand at attention. He began to pace through the lane between the rows of bunks while glaring each soldier in the eye one by one. "Rank 20. How utterly repulsing."

There was a long pause, as Neil passed by a few frightened alpha troops before finally continuing. "Lieutenant Commander Amadei! Please explain to me the primary reason behind our defeat."

"The enemy's main forces eliminated Delta Toon, and then merged with their reserve. Our response was not organized enough to deal with the combined force," Amadei stated without hesitation.

"And how should we have responded?"

Amadei paused for a moment in thought, before answering. "When Delta Toon lost, the remaining toons should have immediately moved in on the main force and prevented them from rejoining their reserve, rather than holding our ground."

"Or?"

Timmy could just barely make out a dejected sigh escape Amadei's lips before he answered. "Or, Beta Toon and my own unit should have charged the enemy the moment it became clear that they were targeting Delta. Prevent them from succeeding, and let Gamma and Delta mop up what remained."

"That is correct," Neil replied, passing by him haughtily. "Even if those strategies could not have ensured our victory, they could have, at the very least, turned defeat into a draw. The enemy had one soldier with exceptional skill, while we had nearly a dozen. So why is it that this one soldier made such fools of you!?"

"Maybe if you'd been down there fighting with us..." some troop behind Neil muttered, and he spun around with a furious glare, looking for the speaker. Few of them were willing to admit it, but most agreed with the statement. While they had been fighting with the enemy, he had separated himself to watch the battle from a distance.

Unable to find the commenter, Neil scowled and returned to his pacing. "Against an army in the Tainted Twenties, my participation should not have been necessary. In the future I will be careful not to repeat that assumption, but the fault here does not lie entirely with me."

The last part of his statement was spoken pointedly, as the commander came to a stop directly before Timmy and glared coldly into his eyes. "Name, soldier?"

"Timothy Lane," he replied, as professionally as he could though he only barely hid his unease. "Sir."

"Towards the end of the battle, what - exactly - did I instruct you?"

A shiver went down Timmy's spine, and he felt an unpleasant lump in his throat. "To take position in the location you pointed me to, to fire at whoever you fired at, and to not leave the position no matter what."

"And what did you do?"

"... I left it."

There was no point in defending himself at this point; even Timmy had known that he was deeply in the wrong. There was a chance, however slim, that they could have changed the outcome of the battle had he held his position and continued under Neil's command. He held his salute firmly and professionally on the outside, but on the inside he was trembling in anguish. At the time he had been so certain that he could take out the ace and become a hero amongst his army, but his failure only made him realize his own idiocy. A future star? No, he was only an insubordinate fool. _'And I thought I could become a commander... impossible.'_

After staring him down for a tediously long thirty seconds, Neil shook his head. "How disappointing," he said simply before moving on while Timmy's own head hung dejectedly.

Those two words hurt more than any raised voice or physical violence ever could have, and indeed he partly wished that the commander had struck or screamed him down instead. Pain and embarrassment he could deal with, but this pierced straight through his pride.

He barely registered as Neil continued. "In any case, it has become clear to me that our army is in desperate need of discipline. From this point on, we will be doubling our efforts in the Battle Room. Expect overhauls and individual evaluations to occur soon. And in the meanwhile, don't you dare slack off in your studies, am I clear?"

"Sir yes sir!" the forty boys shouted in unison, and Neil grunted lowly before turning to leave.

"That is all for tonight. As you were."

…

Everyone stood still for a moment after the door had slid shut before slowly recollecting themselves and crawling back to their beds. Timmy was the last to move, his gaze vacant and despondent as he turned around and collapsed into his lower bunk. He hadn't finished his two hours yet, but he didn't think he could focus on studying anyways at the moment. If only he could turn back time, and put a stop to his own idiocy.

"You've been awfully quiet," Klas' voice rang dully into his ears. He turned his gaze to the side to see his bunkmate, a black boy a few months his senior with a cleanly shaved scalp and a half-hearted smile, looking down at him from the far corner of his bed. Klas seemed worried at the sight of Timmy's expression and took a seat at the foot. "Hey, don't let that piff get you down. Commander Tokar's words ain't worth shit to anyone anymore . He smart maybe, but his mouth belongs in da toilet. Everybody thinks so, even LC."

He let out a soft chuckle, turning over to face away from him. "If you'd told me that yesterday I might've agreed." That kind of insubordinate thinking was exactly what got him into this situation, though. Now he wasn't sure what he thought.

Klas was silent for a moment, gulping down a mouthful of saliva before abruptly breaking the silence as he threw in a suggestion that had been baking in his mind for several hours now. "Let's get outta here."

Timmy fell still for an equal amount of time. "Out of here?" he asked, though he had already had a suspicion.

"You know, outta the army," Klas replied, speaking in an urgent voice but low enough so as not to broadcast it to those around them. "We can request a double transfer; get a commander that actually has his head on straight. The veterans are already doing it in droves. To hell with all this academic crap – I'm sick of studying!"

Another chuckle escaped his lips. "A fresh start, eh? Can't say I haven't considered something like that before." He sighed, burrowing his face deeper into his pillow. But it wouldn't exactly make his screw ups disappear. His new superiors might not know, but he always would. Why couldn't Neil have just hit him instead?

"That's right! Between the two of us, we can probably make something of ourselves in no time. No one wants to be a slow-ass turtle anymore."

"Heh, that's some loyalty you have there, soldier," a voice interjected, cutting Timmy's reply short before it could fully form in his throat. Klas turned, wide-eyed, to see a boy resting on the bunk opposite theirs – his torso hanging upside down off the end so that his scraggly blonde hair dangled beneath his head as he stared at them with a mocking smirk. "Jumping ship as soon as things start to get tough. That'll serve you well when you're older."

"L…Ligh," Klas stuttered in embarrassment as the eavesdropper pulled his torso upwards and then kicked off the bed, performing a back flip in mid-air which landed him right in front of the two, "Lighting Bolt Rolf… sir! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"Shaddap," Rolf growled and Klas instantly fell silent. The officer raised his eyebrows at Timmy, who got the message and hesitantly stood up from his bed to approach him. "You're Timmy, right? In Alpha under LC?"

Timmy nodded, and Rolf revealed a cool-headed smile – and then suddenly slugged him in the cheek a moment later so hard that he fell onto his buttocks. "That's for letting me get hit when you were supposed to have my back in the battle today," Rolf grunted in an oppressive voice. Then, he stepped forward while swinging his foot into Timmy's gut. He fell backwards, moaning slightly from the pain. "And that's for disobeying orders."

Klas stood there, watching the exchange in dismay. Gamma Toon Leader - a skilled soldier, whose talent in the Battle Room had earned him a reputation as Turtle Army's greatest weapon and ace, possessing speed and nimbleness practically unrivaled amongst the turtles; often drawing comparisons with a flash of lightning from their rivals. Before him, Klas did not dare to react in his friend's defense. Get in bad with someone as skilled with him and your career in battle school was as good as ruined; it was all he could manage not to shake in his boots. Timmy began to stand, but was floored once more by another punch. "And that last one was cause I felt like it," Rolf muttered, rubbing his knuckles where his fist had connected.

What was meant to be a brief, silent pause was soon broken as Rolf felt a fist smash into his ribs. "Get lost, doll back!" Lynn roared as the toon leader reeled, pivoting in to throw another punch aimed at his gut. "Pick on someone your own size!"

After taking another strike, Rolf let out a soft '_tchh'_ sound before stepping back while Lynn rapidly thrust her fists forward. Holding his arms at his side nonchalantly – so that his hands would have likely been in his pockets if their jumpsuits had any – he stepped inwards again while weaving his body through Lynn's onslaught of punches with dumbfounding ease. His attunement to battle and skill in close quarters combat obviously leagues above hers, the ten-year-old showed no expression as he closed the distance and raised his leg to smack his foot into Lynn's forehead – sending her flipping backwards to the floor. "Maybe you should follow your own advice, launchie," he said, half chuckling as she rolled while holding her head in pain.

Straightening his posture, he turned back to Timmy and smiled. "Anyways, a couple of my squad members just requested transfers, so I have empty slots to fill." He turned and started to walk away, back to his own squad's bunks at the very front of the barracks. "Congrats, you've been drafted. Welcome to Gamma Toon; let's get along."

As he left, Timmy, barely holding himself up in a crouched position, groaned and fell backwards with his arms outstretched on either side of him. He took it back – getting hit was no better.

* * *

A day had passed since Turtle and Bigfoot Army's battle, and their spirits had hardly risen. Today's training had been more brutal than even the oldest of the army's veteran's could ever remember; half of them didn't bother with showering afterwards in favor of heading straight to bed and getting what little extra rest they could. Quite a few didn't even show any interest in practicing their formations, no doubt because they had already requested transfers and didn't expect to be around much longer. The five worst armies in Battle School, or the Tainted Twenties as they had been humiliatingly dubbed, which Turtle Army now counted themselves a part of was nothing to take pride in and few could hide their displeasure at the prospect. But Commander Tokar gave them no slack regardless, only serving to further cement their decisions.

And thus, the shower room was emptier than usual today. Shower time was already halfway through, and barely half the army had shown up. Not all the troops had retired early, however, as made clear when a troop entered the showers late after having been called to the commander's cabin immediately after training; smiling cunningly as he walked through the rows of stalls. Noting a familiar face, the Japanese boy stepped into the shower beside him and turned the nozzle while throwing his towel aside.

"Ho Yao," the boy in the adjacent shower said, turning his gaze towards him.

"Hei Luke," Hayao replied, looking back at him. "How about today's practice? Brutal, Īe? I sure worked up a sweat."

The greasy-looking boy, Luke, glared back at him briefly, and the two Gamma toon troops fell silent for a bit before he spoke up. "What happened yesterday? What would you of done if one of the officers saw?" He looked as if he had been holding this in for awhile now, waiting for an opportunity where the two of them could be alone. "Why would you freeze our own army members? Twice even?"

Hayao gave him a slight smirk, looking as if he might snicker deviously but remained calm and professional. "I simply acted in our best interest. What the officers don't know won't hurt them. I thought that's what we agreed on?"

Luke seemed to sink backwards a little, searching for a response. "But look what happened…! If you hadn't frozen that Alpha towards the end, we could've actually won it! Have you seen how far we've sunken in the rankings!?"

"Your priorities are mixed up," Hayao replied, turning the shower nozzle to heat up the water spraying down on him. "What matters right now isn't the army's ranking as a whole, but our individual standings. Your line of thinking is too narrow-minded – there's no point in getting into the top ten if some alpha trash is showing us up."

"B… bu-" Luke mumbled in bewilderment, barely processing what his squad mate had said. "If Rolf finds out about this, we're both screwed. He might've missed it once or twice, but he's got a good eye, and you can't expect to get away with it for long. No matter how good you are, you're still his subordinate, and at his mercy."

"Not anymore," Hayao replied simply, holding his palms out in front of him with a professional, yet menacing manner as he allowed the hot water to pour onto his body, steam flowing off his silk-white skin into the vents overhead. "I just had a conversation with Commander Tokar. It's Beta Toon Leader now."

…

"And I need a Second. Or do you want to rat me out."

…

Luke's uneasy expression slowly turned into one of amazement. "I'm in," he finally said with a delighted smirk. "All f**king in."


End file.
